Albright Talks to Ivanov Over U.S. Espionage Case

U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright on Tuesday spoke to Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov over the espionage trial of an American businessman in Moscow, the State Department said.

Albright's telephone call to Ivanov followed the suspension of the case against Edmund Pope, who suffers from a form of bone cancer, State Department spokesman Richard Boucher told reporters.

Pope, 54, a retired U.S. Navy officer, was arrested in early April and charged with stealing secret designs for Russia's high- tech Shkval torpedo system. He has undergone the espionage trial in a Moscow court and may face up to 20 years in prison if convicted.

Because of his suffering from an attack of joint and back pain, suggesting that his bone cancer may be back, his trial was put on hold on Tuesday.

Boucher said Washington had stated repeatedly its concern about the decline of Pope's health. "Today's developments only serve to amplify our concerns," he added.

Boucher said Pope needed advanced tests and asked Moscow to let him go back to the United States.

People's Daily Online --- http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/